Employers set staff up for success

Happy employees good for bottom line

Calgary's oilpatch has cemented its reputation as being one tough competitor when it comes to compensation, but thriving science and technology companies operating in the city are proving they can lure the best and brightest as the top employers in Alberta.

"We are growing and we have plans to grow for the next 18 months," says Nicole Davis, spokeswoman for Bayer Cropscience Inc. "The economic downturn has been helpful for us through this growth phase because we've been able to focus on really hiring for it."

The company joins other local firms ranked by Mediacorp in its annual report on Canada's Top Employers.

At Bayer Cropscience, which moves into its new head office in Quarry Park next month, management has taken a strategy of engagement with its workers.

"Our primary focus around employees is engagement," says Davis. "We want a fully committed workforce that's working in the same direction as the company values and strategy."

It employs several methods of achieving strong employee engagement, including an emphasis on career development. The company has developed a customized mini-MBA program for high-potential employees with tuition covered annually up to $2,000.

It also builds a pool of summer students to develop new talent, provides financial assistance for "active living" activity and extends health benefits into retirement with no age limit.

"We have a corporate philosophy that you fully take care of your people when it comes to their health and wellness benefits," says Davis, referring to the pharmaceutical parent company.

The company has an in-house gym, matches employees' RRSP contributions and runs an in-house apprenticeship training program for millwright apprentices with full funding for education.

Employees at Upside Software Inc., which was also ranked among the province's top employers, finds creative ways to attract and retain its workforce with a simple strategy of putting employees first.

"There is no confusion as to what we put focus on," says Ashif Mawji, chief executive of Upside, a company whose software helps enterprises manage their contracts with vendors and customers. "Our employees are our number 1 asset."

The firm offers perks such as a trip to Baja, an evening at a box suite at Rexall Place in Edmonton where the company is located, maternity top-up benefits up to 100 per cent of salary for eight weeks, generous referral bonuses up to $2,500 and share purchase and profit-sharing plans.

"We put programs in place to make sure that employees are well taken care of from a career standpoint --making sure we line up their objectives with where they want to go--but also from a total compensation point of view," says Mawji.

It's a strategy that has helped the company keep its turnover rate below one per cent.

"We try and look at our employees like a family and make sure everybody is looked after," he says. "When we make a commitment to an employee, we view that as a long-term thing."

Go-karting, playing a few games of pool or taking part in summer events where executives mix with other employees help create that bond.

ENABIL, which provides billing solutions to cellular telephone companies from its office in Calgary, also opened an office in Bangalore so that employees wouldn't be bothered after regular office hours to support its customers. It's all handled from India.

Even small gestures add up, like the free lunch and breakfasts offered monthly by the company.

All of the companies that made the list of Canada's Top Employers share a genuine commitment to their employees by going above and beyond in striving to engage the workforce.

"We've spent a lot of time ensuring we look after work-life balance for our employees," says Little.